The Support Ate it All
Chapter 67: The Depths (1)

The swordsmanship club.

It was a pillar among the four major powers within the Martial Alliance.

The sole requirement for joining was the use of a sword as one’s main weapon.

There was a saying that the sword was the king of all weapons, and the number of students who used swords was overwhelmingly greater than that of other weapons.

Moreover, as long as one wielded a sword, the club did not discriminate against members from other factions outside the Martial Alliance.

This gathering of swordsmen had formed one of the top two huge forces within the Dragon Slayer Academy.

Only the White Magic Club could somewhat rival it with a significant gap between them and the other clubs.

Should a full-scale conflict arise, even mid-tier clubs like the thieves’ club could be swiftly overwhelmed, so even someone like Dang Gyu-young had no choice but to be wary here.

Of course, someone at the level of a club president would have a few means to smooth over any issues that might arise.

It was likely that most of Dang Gyu-young’s concerns were directed towards me.

“You probably know this, but getting on the bad side of the swordsmanship club is on a whole different level than with the Emerald. Are you still going to go through with it?”

“Yes, I am.”

Dang Gyu-young was taken aback by my immediate and unwavering response.

It seemed she had expected me to back down at this point.

“…Really? You’re serious?”

“Really.”

I did find the timing somewhat coincidental.

I hadn’t anticipated that my goals would align with those of the swordsmanship club at this very moment.

But that was all there was to it.

Eventually, I was bound to either collaborate with or confront the Martial Alliance in some way.

The only difference now was that this intersection of paths was happening sooner than expected.

“I’ll take care of everything. Please proceed.”

“…….”

Dang Gyu-young looked at me with complicated eyes before shaking her head in resignation as if to say she couldn’t stop me either way.

“Haah, alright. I suppose our junior-nim here who has graduated over 200 times must have some tricks up his sleeve. So we’ll proceed with this plan. When do you plan to head out?”

“It’s a dungeon that takes up quite a bit of time, so Friday seems like a good choice.”

“Yeah, Friday does seem best from my perspective too. Who’s going with you? The handsome guy and the girl with the gray hair you brought last time?”

She was probably referring to Go Hyeon-woo and Seo Ye-eun, with whom she only lightly got to know during my duel with the Emerald Magic Tower.

“Just the handsome friend will accompany me this time.”

“Weren’t you with him on Monday too, for the D-rank one? With Byung-cheol as the guide. For the depths, two more will join you. It will be me and her.”

Dang Gyu-young pointed to herself and then to the girl with a tablet.

Shin Byung-cheol was taken aback and asked

“You’re going yourself?”

“If we’re going to do this, might as well do it right. But I’ll be charging extra for labor. What do you think?”

Following that, Dang Gyu-young sought my opinion.

I would be grateful if someone with the skills of a club president would be covering for us, even if it meant paying a higher price.

“I also like to be sure.”

“Good.”

Dang Gyu-young would use shadows to erase the presence of those accompanying us, while Shin Byung-cheol would take care of the physical devices.

Naturally, disabling magical engineering devices like crystal balls was the responsibility of the girl with the tablet.

Meanwhile, the tablet girl was quietly listening to the conversation on one side with a tired expression on her face.

But her fingers never stopped tapping on the tablet.

Dang Gyu-young glanced back and forth between me and the tablet girl before she tilted her head in confusion.

“……?”

Why does it look awkward between you two? Her face seemed to say.

Then, something seemed to click in her head and her eyebrows shot up in realization.

It’s not awkward; we’re just meeting for the first time.

We had seen each other during the raid on the temporary storage, but I had been wearing a mask at that time.

It was only because she was still carrying the tablet around that I recognized her; otherwise, I would have had no clue.

Dang Gyu-young noticed that point too late and introduced her to me.

“Ah, this is Chae Da-bin.”

The tie pin indicated she was a second-year.

Chae Da-bin gestured towards me and asked,

“It’s a request, so I don’t mind going down with him, but he’s a first-year? Can he beat a B-rank dungeon?”

“That’s… Well, explaining it outright is a bit complicated. Hey, is it alright if I tell her ‘that’?”

Before answering the question, Dang Gyu-young sought my permission.

I caught on to what “that” meant and nodded my head.

Chae Da-bin didn’t seem like the type to spread rumors, and even if she did, I was confident I could handle the situation.

Dang Gyu-young then introduced me.

“This guy is Inferno Fist.”

“!!”

Chae Da-bin’s eyes widened in surprise as she looked at me.

She evidently hadn’t imagined that the person who defeated Kwak Seung-jae was a first-year student.

“That was you?”

“Yes, that was me.”

“So, then… B-rank might be possible… for you too? Is it possible?”

She asked Dang Gyu-young as if she was unsure about her own level.

But it appeared that Dang Gyu-young was also uncertain.

She looked at me with an ambiguous expression.

“Well, I’m not sure about that. Kim Ho, be honest. Are you stronger than me?”

“Of course not. How could I possibly beat a third-year?”

“So what’s the plan? B-rank is tough even for me.”

“Instead of a long explanation, take a look at this.”

I handed Dang Gyu-young a document.

The [Black Death] strategy guide.

For quick understanding, I have summarized much of the content from what I gave to Go Hyeon-woo.

And Dang Gyu-young’s eyes sparkled with interest from the first page,

Every time she flipped through the pages, the corner of her mouth kept on curling up into a smile.

“Wow… where did you manage to find this?”

Shin Byung-cheol and Chae Da-bin were both curious and they peered over from behind, sneaking glances at the strategy guide.

The gazes of the three began to shift unsettlingly and they started whispering among themselves after casting furtive glances my way.

– So to summarize, we just go in, grab the core, and get out? This is just like…

– What thieves do.

– No better than a burglar.

– I told you. This person fits right in with our club’s ideal candidate profile, didn’t I

– Now that I think about it, he does seem a bit cunning…

– I knew it from the start. Could it be the aura of a fellow kindred spirit I felt before?

Sensing that another recruitment offer might be forthcoming, I preempted Dang Gyu-young just as she was about to speak.

“How about it? Do you think it’s possible?”

“…! You’re always quick on the uptake. Yes, with your strategy, there would indeed be fewer battles.”

Then, Dang Gyu-young pointed to a section in the strategy guide.

“However, looking at this part, it seems we’ll need someone to dismantle the mechanism.”

“I was actually going to ask for your help with that as well.”

“Why look any further? We have one right here.”

All eyes converged on Shin Byung-cheol.

Shin Byeong-cheol pointed at himself with his finger.

“Me? You want me to go in? Into a B-rank dungeon?”

“You were the one who said last time, ‘If it’s up to me, those mechanical traps are child’s play!’”

“Yes, I did say that, but B-rank is a whole different story. We’re talking life and death here.”

“What’s there for you to fear? You’ve seen the strategy. And if things go south, there’s always the emergency escape.”

“But what if something goes wrong? That could be the end!”

“Then you’ll just have to make sure nothing goes wrong!”

Dang Gyu-young and Shin Byung-cheol bickered back and forth for a while.

Shin Byung-cheol who was usually subdued by the authority of the club president, stood his ground this time, perhaps feeling the threat to his safety more acutely.

Dang Gyu-young was also aware of the dangers within the dungeon this time so when considering the potential risks, she preferred persuasion over coercion.

Their standoff was so evenly matched it seemed they could go on all day.

So I had no choice but to interject into their ongoing argument.

“Let’s talk about the compensation. You might change your mind after hearing it.”

“No, I won’t do it. No matter what you offer as compensation, I absolutely won’t do it. Really, no. Not even if you beat me to death. Just no.”

Shin Byeong-cheol expressed with his whole body that he did not want to enter a B-rank dungeon.

“Is that so? You might regret it.”

“I’d rather live with the regret. I’m someone who prefers to live a long and humble life. I’m sorry, but it might be better to look for another senior to—”

“Ghost Dance.”

“……!”

“……!”

The faces of the three members of the thieves’ club hardened at once.

[Ghost Dance] was a hidden piece that no one in classes valuing stealth could simply ignore. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the Nʘvᴇl(F)ire.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Even the two assassins Jang Sam and Wang Pil had been tempted and the thieves before me were no exception.

Dang Gyu-young asked,

“That actually exists? I thought it was just an urban legend.”

“It does exist.”

I knew how to find it.

It would take some time but I was confident I would find it within the semester.

Sharing that hidden piece with the three individuals before me was the reward I offered.

“Of course, giving you the Ghost Dance just for helping me reach this dungeon in the depths would be a loss for me, so I’ll ask for a few more favors.”

“That’s only fair. What about you Da-bin?”

“……”

Chae Da-bin furrowed her brow in thought and did not respond.

The sudden offer of such a significant hidden piece as a reward must have seemed unbelievable to her.

Dang Gyu-young sought confirmation once again.

“Can we really trust this person?”

“He’s not one to make things up, that’s for sure.”

“Then I can’t miss this opportunity. I’ll take on this request.”

“Me too. Since Byung-cheol is out, we just need to find a replacement. Who was good at dealing with mechanisms again?”

Dang Gyu-young and Chae Da-bin were already discussing the matter while excluding Shin Byung-cheol from their considerations.

Suddenly, Shin Byung-cheol did a complete 180 and inserted himself into the conversation.

“Hey, hold up, time out. Who said anything about being left out? You can’t discuss mechanisms without mentioning Shin Byung-cheol, can you?”

“Weren’t you the one saying you wouldn’t go because it was too risky?”

“After giving it some thought, I figured if we follow the strategy closely, it should be fine, right?”

Shin Byung-cheol sought my agreement.

I echoed the words Shin Byung-cheol had just used.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to live a long and humble life?”

“Me? When? A true man lives a short and impactful life, right?”

Shin Byung-cheol was blatantly denying his earlier words.

His skin seemed so thick that it appeared as if not even a tribal spear could pierce through it.

For me, there was no downside.

I had confirmed that Shin Byung-cheol’s ability to dismantle traps was on par with those in the second and third years.

If he was willing to join us, he was more than welcome.

However, there was a baseline of effort that had to be met.

I flashed a grin and pulled out another stack of documents.

“Memorize this by Friday.”

It was the [Black Death] strategy guide, not the summarized version Dang Gyu-young had, but the original version I had made Go Hyeon-woo memorize.

Shin Byung-cheol’s expression turned to one of suffocation as he gauged the thickness of the documents.

“Guh, this is quite a lot. Isn’t it a bit too much to memorize all this in just two days?”

Given that we were actually entering the dungeon, there was much more to be aware of, hence the volume of material.

So there was no room for compromise on this matter.

Skimming through the dungeon guide or granting more time were both out of the question.

“You’ll have to give something up, then. Either take fewer errands or cut down on sleep.”

“…..”

“There’s always the option not to participate if you don’t like it.”

Upon hearing this, Shin Byung-cheol adopted an exceedingly polite demeanor and took the strategy guide.

“There’s no way I don’t like it. Give it here. I’ll input every single detail into my brain.”

“I’ll test you later. If you get it wrong, you’re not coming.”

“Don’t worry. I said I’ll memorize it all, didn’t I?”

As if eager to start immediately, Shin Byung-cheol took the documents and headed to a corner of the room.

I could hear him muttering to himself,

“Never thought I’d see the day I’d be studying again…”

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